Robert Zemeckis has certainly made a reputation for himself
as one of the greats of American cinema, having directed some of the most
enduring films of our popular culture, from Back
to the Future to Who Framed Roger
Rabbit to Forrest Gump, to name
only a few. In retrospect, it seems like
it was only a matter of time before he attempted his hand at the 3D filming
gimmick, and I feel that my experience is somewhat lacking for having seen the
film in 2D on a home television set.
There are moments that were clearly intended for 3D visuals and, in a
very rare circumstance, were likely greatly enhanced by the effect, but alas,
the time to see that has passed. So does the film hold up even without the vertigo-inducing visuals? Well, yes and no.
It seems pretty obvious that biopics are not Zemeckis’s
strong suit, as his characteristic whimsy makes its way into the life story of
tightrope walker Philippe Petit in a manner that really feels intrusive and
unnecessary. The first half of the film
is all about Petit (a surprisingly physically agile Joseph Gordon-Levitt)
making his way up in the street-performing scene and making preparations to
come to America to cross the newly-erected World Trade Center towers on a
tightrope. Considering that the great
accomplishments of Petit’s life largely come down to one event, an entire hour
of build-up feels excessive and indulgent, an attempt to make Petit seem like
more of an underappreciated performance auteur than he actually was. The film even borders on megalomania with
Petit breaking the fourth wall in cutaway narration with the Twin Towers
looming in the background, a move that is meant to be fanciful but ultimately
feels egotistic and unnecessary.
However, once the film finally gets to New York and the
towers themselves, it transitions into a full-on heist movie, with Petit and
his accomplices executing their mad plan to rig a wire across the towers in the
covert dead of night. Until this point,
Petit’s accomplices are criminally underdeveloped, yet another sign of
Zemeckis’s overreliance on Petit’s supposedly overbearing personality, but by
the time the heist rolls around, the character details fade into the background
for some really tense stealth sequences.
It doesn’t matter that you know the wire will eventually be erected;
Zemeckis is a crafty enough director to give sufficient urgency to make you
forget that.
And of course, the sequences where Petit traverses the wire
are simply breathtaking. Zemeckis
captures the sheer vertigo of being one hundred stories in the air, and even
though not in 3D is still captivating on a smaller screen. This is perhaps the only time in the film
where the intrusive narration is at all welcome, as Petit spends most of his
time mute and evading the police waiting at either end of the wire. And aside from a couple hokey moments meant
to instigate doubt or self-reflection, the excitement of the
sequence is not diminished.
So all in all, the film ends up being a bit of a wash. If you’re looking for a great story with interesting
characters, this isn’t really the film for you, and you’ll find the first half
of the film visually interesting but not much else. However, if you are willing to sit back and
wait it out, there are some fantastic heist setpieces and a visually marvelous
third act just waiting to be experienced.
It’s a shame that this film will no longer be shown on big screens in
three dimensions as it was clearly intended to be, but if the visual marvel
interests you, it’s still worth the wait.
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